

# Event Details

- **Event Name**: The Golden Thread: A New Philosophical Defense of Esoterica
- **Event Start and End Date**: Thu, 26 Mar, 2026 at 07:00 pm
- **Event Description**: *Join us in person or online with Stephen T. Asma on Thursday, March 26th!*

In contemporary science and philosophy, the esoteric and occult are often dismissed as irrational, anachronistic, and even gullible. Professor Stephen Asma will mount a new defense of esoterica, drawing on emerging perspectives in philosophy and neuroscience that emphasize an embodied view of the mind.

This lens can be used to reassess the value of occult theory and practice, showing how esoteric symbols, myths, and rituals can help us manage emotions, create mythopoetic meaning and purpose, and achieve embodied forms of knowledge.

In this illustrated talk, Asma will trace the Golden Thread of mysticism and magic from Neo-Platonism through Swedenborg, Blavatsky, and Merton up to the contemporary resurgence of esoterica among Millennials and Gen Z. 

Stephen T. Asma is Professor of Philosophy at Columbia College Chicago and Senior Fellow of its Research Group in Mind, Science, and Culture. He is the author of ten books, including The Evolution of Imagination, The Emotional Mind: Affective Roots of Culture and Cognition with Rami Gabriel, On Monsters: An Unnatural History of Our Worst Fears, and The Gods Drink Whiskey. His writing has appeared in The New York Times, The Chronicle of Higher Education, Skeptic magazine, and numerous other publications, with his work translated into multiple languages. Asma has taught and researched extensively throughout Asia including Cambodia, China, Thailand, Vietnam, Hong Kong, and Laos—and was a Fulbright Scholar in Beijing. He has lectured at institutions such as Harvard, Brown, the Field Museum, the Smithsonian National Museum of Natural History, Fudan University, and Xi’an Jiaotong University. In addition to his scholarly work, Asma is also a blues/jazz musician who has performed with artists including Bo Diddley and Buddy Guy.
- **Event URL**: https://allevents.in/wheaton/the-golden-thread-a-new-philosophical-defense-of-esoterica/200029858137500
- **Event Categories**: art, music, entertainment, fine-arts, literary-art
- **Interested Audience**: 
  - total_interested_count: 17

## Ticket Details

- **Ticket URL**: http://facebook.com/200029858137500?utm_source=AllEvents.in&utm_medium=event-discovery-platform&utm_campaign=wheaton-events

## Event venue details

- **city**: Wheaton
- **state**: IL
- **country**: United States
- **location**: Theosophical Society in America
- **lat**: 41.885982759306
- **long**: -88.109318802397
- **full address**: Theosophical Society in America, 1926 N Main St,Wheaton, Illinois, United States

## Event Organizer details

- **affiliate_id**: 2
- **organizer**: Theosophical Society in America (https://allevents.in/org/theosophical-society-in-america/1789439)

## Event gallery

- **Alt text**: banner
  - **Image URL**: https://cdn-az.allevents.in/events1/banners/1b60929ac8acfe1b74bb551784e12795260dde8559221309798218870aea3b20-rimg-w1200-h638-dc020101-gmir?v=1774432859
- **Alt text**: thumbnail
  - **Image URL**: https://cdn-az.allevents.in/events1/banners/7850c94eef6fc23bbe23d94a395b58e7c29907b1d4cc87f35e56bd6f5a085c42-rimg-w300-h300-dc010101-gmir?v=1774432860

## FAQs

- **Q**: When is the event happening?
  - **A:** Thu, 26 Mar, 2026 at 07:00 pm
- **Q**: Where is the event happening?
  - **A:** Theosophical Society in America, 1926 N Main St,Wheaton, Illinois, United States
- **Q**: Who is organizing the event?
  - **A:** Theosophical Society in America
- **Q**: What type of event is this?
  - **A:** art, music, entertainment, fine-arts, literary-art
- **Q**: Where can I find ticket details about The Golden Thread: A New Philosophical Defense of Esoterica ?
  - **A:** You can find ticket details about this event on AllEvents.

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